Caesalpinia mexicana     
Mexican bird of paradise   
Fabaceae Family     

Form: rounded shrub or multistemmed tree in warm, protected location
Seasonality: evergreen

rounded leaflets on Caesalpinia mexicana

Size: 10-15ft, spread usual 1/2 to 1/3 height
Leaves: alternate, bipinnate, round leaflets
Flowers: spikes of solid yellow clusters on branch terminals; flowers up to 6in long; bloom early spring through summer
Fruit: flat tan or yellow pod, 2-3in long ; splits to release hard small lima bean-shaped seed; seeds are poisonous
Stems/Trunks: spineless
Range/Origin: Mexico
Hardiness: to mid-teens, damaged below that but recovers quickly

LANDSCAPE VALUE:

• small patio tree
• background shrub
• attracts hummingbirds

CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Exposure: best in full sun, part shade okay
• Water: low; supplement with one watering per week during flowering period only
• Soil: tolerant

blooms (young cluster)

Propagation: seed, requires scarification

Maintenance: moderate to high; pod cleanup, pruning of cold damage, training to form if desired

---

NOTES:

leaflets more round than other Caesalpina sp.

Caesalpinia mexicana trained to small tree form; flowering period just beginning

return to common name index				return to Botanical name index
	browse by common name				browse by botanical name

This page was first created August 24, 2001 and last modified March 16, 2006.

---

Web page design and photographs by Toni Moore, Master Gardener
email to: tmoore1@flash.net

© 2001 - 2006 Arizona Board of Regents. All contents copyrighted. All rights reserved.